(Boise) – Jason Preston, 31, of Idaho Falls was ordered to serve 20 days in the county jail for insurance fraud and damaging insured property. Preston pleaded guilty to the two charges on March 29.

Preston was sentenced yesterday to 1 to 4 years in prison, 20 days in the county jail, 100 hours of community service and 4 years probation. Sixth District Judge Joel Tingey also ordered Preston to pay a $750 fine and court costs. The court suspended the prison sentence.

In July of 2011, Preston reported to the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office that his motorcycle was damaged when he went down to avoid an animal.

In fact, Preston had placed the motorcycle in the back of his pickup truck and gone to a rural road outside of Idaho Falls. While his girlfriend drove the truck at 40–50 miles per hour, Preston pushed the motorcycle out of the truck and onto the road. He subsequently had his girlfriend drag him down the road behind the truck in order to make his clothing look like it had been damaged in a motorcycle accident. The girlfriend then left the scene and Preston called 911 to report the “accident.” Preston subsequently made false statements about the event to his insurance company.

The case was investigated by the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office and the Idaho Department of Insurance. The Attorney General’s Insurance Crimes Unit acted as special prosecutor at the request of the Bonneville County Prosecuting Attorney.